What is vibration protection?

Vibration protection refers to all measures aimed at protecting buildings and sensitive structures from vibrations. Shocks and vibrations often originate from road and rail traffic or from sources within buildings, such as machinery. Adequate protection safeguards the building fabric and minimizes the impact of disruptive sound and noise on quality of life.

Causes of vibrations
Vibrations may originate from the surrounding environment or from the operation of buildings, machinery or equipment. Rail traffic in particular generates vibrations that travel through the ground and can be felt inside buildings. The degree to which these vibrations are transmitted also depends on the type of subsoil and the building’s structure. Vibrations can also be generated within buildings, often by commercial activities or technical equipment. In industrial settings, vibrations are often generated by machinery and can damage building structures and sensitive equipment.

Damage caused by vibrations
Vibrations can cause considerable damage. Buildings are particularly at risk, with typical consequences including cracks in walls, foundation settlement or loosening of building components. Railway tracks are exposed to constant vibrations, which can cause lateral distortion of the track and material fatigue, compromise operational safety and lead to high maintenance costs. Sensitive equipment and machinery in laboratories, production facilities or medical centres are also at risk of damage. Even the slightest vibrations can impair measurement accuracy, reduce service life or lead to functional failures. In addition, structure-borne noise and the resulting secondary airborne noise can be annoying to occupants and, in extreme cases, harmful to health.

Expertise

Your partner for vibration protection

As an expert in vibration protection, Getzner uses a combination of measurement, analysis and customised solutions. In most cases, our experts can provide a forecast based on minimal information during the planning phase and make a well-founded assessment of the work, costs and expected outcome of a vibration protection solution. Our experienced engineers then develop tailored solutions to minimise the transmission of vibrations. They draw on expertise in structural dynamics and building acoustics as well as many years of experience in optimising railway superstructures.

Our vibration-isolating materials, such as Sylomer® and Sylodyn®, are available in precisely graded variants for a wide range of applications. The materials are integrated into the overall structure in such a way to ensure effective vibration decoupling.

Expert advice is essential to help you select the right measures and verify their effectiveness. This provides long-lasting protection against vibrations, ensuring both comfort and safety.

Werkstoffe entdecken

Construction

Vibration protection should be taken into account as early as the building planning stage

The design and operation of buildings require careful planning to prevent vibrations and their effects. Vibrations from traffic, technical equipment or industrial processes cause structure-borne noise and disruptive noise inside buildings. Effective vibration protection must therefore be taken into account from the planning phase onwards.

In building applications, the focus is often on protecting against structure-borne noise immissions – buildings are often exposed to vibrations generated elsewhere. If it is not possible to mitigate vibrations at their source, measures to control these immissions are required.

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Evening view of Troger Höfe: Modern design, illuminated windows, and a tram.

Railway

Protection against vibrations and noise from railway traffic

Wherever there are trains there are vibrations. Railway traffic is a major source of vibrations and noise in urban and sensitive areas. The vibrations caused by passing trains are transmitted to buildings via the subsoil and can cause structural damage. At the same time, structure-borne noise and secondary airborne noise are also generated, which can be both disruptive and harmful to health. These impacts are particularly critical in residential areas or near hospitals, laboratories and production facilities.

Vibration protection measures directly in the railway superstructure reduce structure-borne noise emissions and prevent them from being transmitted to the surrounding area. This protects the railway superstructure itself, prolongs the infrastructure’s service life and protects adjacent buildings.

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Fast train on tracks at sunset with blurred lights.

Case Study

A real-world example

Our case study ‘Long-term protection from structure-borne noise in the centre of Grenoble’ demonstrates how lasting protection from tram-generated vibration immissions was achieved.

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Getzner employees performing vibration analysis on tram tracks.

Standards

Measurement of vibrations in buildings according to DIN 4150

Getzner Werkstoffe not only designs and manufactures materials for vibration reduction, but it is also an experienced building consultant and supports companies with their projects, from planning to success monitoring. Recognised standards, such as DIN 4150 ‘Vibrations in buildings’, are used to measure vibrations. This standard governs the assessment of vibrations and vibration measurements that affect buildings and people. It consists of three parts:

Part 1 describes the preliminary assessment of vibration levels to evaluate potential impacts at an early stage.

Part 2 specifies procedures and limit values for the impact of vibrations on people in buildings. The aim is to avoid significant discomfort. The relevant frequency range is between 1 Hz and 80 Hz.

Part 3 covers the effects on structures and defines reference values for short-term and long-term vibrations to prevent damage to buildings.

Getzner glossary

Further definitions

Natural frequency, vibration or loss factor – our glossary provides explanations of the key terms used in vibration protection and isolation.

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Contact

Vibration protection explained simply

Your partner for vibration protection

Vibration protection should be taken into account as early as the building planning stage

Protection against vibrations and noise from railway traffic

A real-world example

Measurement of vibrations in buildings according to DIN 4150

Further definitions

If you have any questions, we will be happy to help you.

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